Finally, my chance to shine!
As unassuming as it looks, don't do yourself a disservice by writing Ryu Kyu off as some shovelware title only the mahjong grandpas will enjoy. Success was firing on
all cylinders with this one. A simple enough concept; essentially "bingo meets poker" with a light dash of solitaire, but so well executed it transcends into something uniquely addicting, at least for those with the patience for less action-oriented puzzlers.
It was originally a PC game done by the ASCII subsidiary Login Soft, and designed by Ryuji Kuwaki, who went on to have quite the impressive résumé (Panel de Pon, Puzzle Star Sweep, and Sin & Punishment are among his later credits.) A year after the initial PC releases, Success ported it to the System 16B, and then FACE ported it to PC Engine and Game Gear shortly afterwards.
The various adjustments Success made in the name of greater arcade viability make all the difference in the world. They did away with the "Stock" system, as that would've made it too trivial of a 1CC (they arguably went too far in the opposite direction - more on that in a bit!) A 30-second timer was implemented as the obligatory Hurry Up mechanic. To counterbalance the difficulty increases, they let you see the next 3 cards in every stack
(EDIT: after double checking, looks like this was also a thing in the home versions on the higher difficulty selections. Whoops!), give you the ability to cancel your last action a maximum of 3 times (you gain cancels back by hitting certain point thresholds), as well as adding the "Omikuji" bonus stages, where you not only get a chance to reduce the required point quota in the next stage, but can also earn a random number of "Bonus Lines" (glowing lines on the grid where, if you successfully form a hand, it'll be worth
double the normal amount of points.)
Individually these are all minor tweaks, but they add up to a mighty indispensable package. What was a middling game on X68000 and PC Engine becomes the ultimate "thinking man's" puzzler in this environment. The timer seems overly generous at first, but in those later stages where the point quotas start getting ridiculous, you'll need
every last second to make your decisions. It incentivizes taking the game at a more methodical pace, letting time expire every move so you can properly scan the play field, weigh up all the possible hands you can form with the cards you hold, cancel your last move because you suddenly spotted a more lucrative opportunity, etc...
Oh yes, perhaps the main appeal for all my fellow tryhards on here: it infamously took
32 years for anyone to 1CC, and to this day still only two people have achieved it. How's
that for motivation to top that ACA leaderboard?
[P.S. For a more in-depth breakdown of the rules and general strategy of the game, Yeti's guide
here is essential reading. He's the current WR holder, he knows a thing or two.]
BIL wrote: ↑Wed May 21, 2025 3:58 pm
Also reminded that the first and third BGMs are great too. The
third always makes me think of
Beast Girl, Cham-Cham's theme from Sam Sho 2. With all the game's stylistic nods to the kingdom of Ryu Kyu, I almost wonder if there's some cultural heritage to its music, too. (Cham-Cham and Tam-Tam being exotic royalty themselves) Such a comforting sound.
I'll have to consult my Okinawan culture expert friend on this, but I do believe the soundtrack is authentic Ryukyuan style melodies. I too love hearing that BGM kick in on stage 13, on the rare occasions I make it that far. Fittingly tense music when you're approaching home stretch on a 2 hour clear attempt, shit just got
real, yo.
On a side note, the Game Gear port has a
completely new OST courtesy of FACE, I've come to learn? In spite of my bias, I might honestly give this the nod over the AC arrangement...
Closest I've seen to a coin-op Silpheed. (Mega CD)
zako, a lot of problems solvable by hauling ass in a macro style. (here come that wobble tho!) The wobble intensity is pretty hellacious, but I suppose this is what all those hours in Master Of Wobble were for. 
Master Of Weapon I mean.
Particularly with it being a System 16B game... I still hold out hopes for Sunsoft's Bay Route and TUFF TURF.
Wanted my cousins to put Ninja Gaiden back on, but could tell there was some frisson of shonen fire here, too. Despite the localisers' best efforts to strip away its $1,000,000 KID manga license!
